HILDEGARD EMMEL Der Weg in Die Gegenwart: Geschichte Des
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Special Service ( 1973) is also his most popular dynamic movement that serves to acceler among readers of Spanish, probably be ate the flow of events and heighten ironic cause of its rollicking humor. Pantoja is a contrasts. diligent young army officer who, because of his exceptionally fine record as an ad In his dissection of Peruvian society, ministrator, is sent to Peru's northeastern Vargas Llosa satirizes the military organiza tropical region on a secret mission, the tion as well as the corruption, hypocrisy, purpose of which is to organize a squad and cliché-ridden language of his fellow ron of prostitutes referred to as "Special countrymen. A difficult book to trans Service." It seems that a series of rapes late, Captain Pantoja . loses some of has been committed by lonely soldiers its impact in the English version. Still, it stationed in this remote zone, and high- should be greatly enjoyed by American ranking officers in Lima reason that the readers with a taste for absurd humor prostitutes would satisfy sexual appetites and innovative narrative devices. and thus reduce tensions between civilians and military personnel. Although less than enthusiastic about his new post, Pantoja George R. McMurray flies to the tropical city of Iquitos where, despite many obstacles, he makes his unit the most efficient in the Peruvian army. Meanwhile, a spellbinding prophet called Brother Francisco has mesmerized a grow ing sect of religious fanatics, whose rituals include the crucifixion of animals and human beings. The novel is brought to a climax by the death of Pantoja's beautiful HILDEGARD EMMEL mistress, one of the prostitutes, and his Der Weg in die Gegenwart: Geschichte dramatic funeral oration revealing the des deutschen Romans. Vol. III. army's role in prostitution. By way of Berne: Francke (Sammlung Dalp punishment, he is transferred to the remote highlands of Peru where, it is suggested, 106), 1978. Pp. 214. he continues to represent the epitome of military efficiency. The third and final volume of Professor Emmel's history of the German novel covers Captain Pantoja . might be de the years from the end of World War I scribed as an absurd novel enriched by to about 1970. The book has three parts; strong doses of irony and the grotesque, the first is devoted to the time of the its protagonist typifying the absurd hero Weimar Republic, mainly to novels by the who never gives up in the face of ad following authors: Erich Maria Remarque, versity. A victim of irony throughout the Arnold Zweig, Lion Feuchtwanger, Alfred novel, Pantoja elicits the reader's guffaws Neumann, Alfred Döblin, Jakob Wasser because of his puritanical nature and his mann, Franz Werfel, Joseph Roth, Anna serious, analytical approach to his scabrous Seghers, Hans Fallada. The second part assignment, but ultimately he merits sym is entitled "Romankonvention und totali pathy and respect. The frequent juxta tärer Staat"; under this heading the author position of his ludicrous antics and Brother analyses novels written in Germany during Francisco's barbarous crucifixions, more the Nazi period, novels written in exile, over, create clashing emotional tensions and the modern novels written in the similar to those produced by grotesque German Democratic Republic by authors art. like Anna Seghers, Johannes Bobrowsky, Christa Wolf, and Hermann Kant. Western novelists treated in this chapter are: Elias Canetti, Bert Brecht (Preigroschenroman, Because of his emphasis on avant-garde Die Geschäfte des Herrn Julius Caesar, Tui- structural techniques, Vargas Llosa has Roman), Ernst Jünger, and Thomas been regarded as the technologist of the Mann. The third chapter is the most Latin American novel. Captain Pantoja convincing one: Ms. Emmel analyzes the . not only utilizes a montage of mili most important novels written since 1950— tary reports, dream sequences, letters and works by Heinrich Böll, Hans Erich radio broadcasts, but also fuses narrative Nossack, Wolfgang Koeppen, Max Frisch, prose with two or more interwoven Günter Grass, Martin Walser, Uwe Johnson, dialogues dramatizing the different plot Ingeborg Bachmann, and Arno Schmidt. threads. The result is an impression of 86 The International Fiction Review, 6, No. 1 (1979) Professor Emmel had no intention to DEAN McWILLIAMS include everybody and everything. In fact, The Narratives of Michel Butor: she mentions a few dozen novels alto gether—no more. Anything which she con The Writer as Janus. siders not quite first class is either left Athens, Ohio: Ohio University out or just mentioned in passing. Peter Press, 1978. Pp. 150. Handke and Thomas Bernhard are left out because, as pointed out in the intro duction, they are authors, "die vom Professor McWilliams's premise that all heutigen Standpunkt noch nicht mit of Butor's work presents one unique theme, Sicherheit einzuorden sind." inherent from the earliest to the most recent, becomes plausible as we read his Although Professor Emmel is herself a study of the total opus of the French refugee from the GDR, her treatment of writer. Suddenly works which may have East-German authors is fair—at least with appeared unconnected and crisscrossed regard to the space allotted to them. by multiple hermetic trends become one Clearly, she has a better understanding cohesive whole dominated by one omni of Brecht than of Christa Wolf or Hermann present theme: the search of modern Kant. Erwin Strittmatter, Ehm Welk, Hans Western man for his historical roots. Marchwitza, Willi Bredel, and Stefan Heym are mentioned en passant only, but so are many known West-German authors. The study begins with an introduction intended to give the reader insight into Professor Emmel is a careful reader—and Butor's life and an understanding of the an honest one. She writes only about what mythic structures inherent in his works. she has read herself, and her analyses Some of these are: rites of passage, the express her own considered opinion. One quest of the hero, meandering through might argue that she overestimates certain labyrinthine tasks, aborted Epiphanies, and authors; one, for instance, is Feuchtwanger. ultimate sacrifice. The entire oeuvre is seen While about 20 (of 240) pages are allotted as a journey which often ends in frustration to him, Heimito von Doderer and Hanns although the hope for personal and collec Henny Jahnn have less than 20 lines tive regeneration lies at the core of the each, and Peter Bichsel or Adolf Muschg ritual patterns. are not mentioned at all. As in her pre vious volumes, popular literature is There are ten individual chapters ar ignored: there is no mention of the best ranged in clear chronological order from sellers by Simmel, Habe, de Wohl, or those Passage de Milan to the recent Intervalle. modern authors who hide their talents The earliest novel published in 1954 places and their keen social criticism in crime the search theme in a vague Egyptian novels of literary value—a unique phe cultural background which colors the nomenon in recent German literature. But meanderings of the protagonists in their books in the series "Sammlung Dalp" shallow Parisian lives. The next chapter are limited in length, and a choice deals with L'Emploi du Temps wherein Butor had to be made. Also, the author had is seen as expanding his historical schema to keep in mind her public, mainly stu by unearthing an entire series of earlier dents of German literature, i.e. she had to civilizations buried in present day Man adhere, more or less, to the generally chester. The hero struggles toward a higher accepted canon of the German novel. level of consciousness while we, the For all who want an introduction to readers, join him in his archeological and the field, Professor Emmel's "History psychological wanderings. In the chapter of the German Novel" is a reliable, well- devoted to La Modification Butor is seen as written, if somewhat conservative guide. denouncing an attempt at self-deception by a hero or anti-hero who would suppress part of his Roman heritage from his Ingrid Schuster conscience. He is torn between his pagan aspirations and his bourgeois Catholic milieu. Janus, the god who oscillates be tween the forces of the past and the réévaluation of the future is introduced as he haunts Delmont's nightmares and points the way toward a yet unforeseen course of action. Brief Mentions 87 .